The Doctor has been traveling through time and space now for almost 60 years, which is quite an impressive accomplishment in of itself. During that time, they have met literally hundreds of people, some of whom have even joined the Doctor in traveling in the TARDIS. It should come as no surprise then that Doctor Who has featured its fair share of relationships.
Some of these couples were incredibly popular and a special shout out must go to Reinette and the Doctor; Martha and Mickey, and Jackie and Pete. However, there were other relationships that failed to inspire fandom which are better off left in the past.
Best - Danny Pink And Clara Oswald
Danny and Clara’s relationship got off to an extremely awkward start, with both parties obviously attracted to each other but neither possessing the required social skills to actually tell the other. Of course, the Doctor’s influence didn’t particularly help matters. Nor did the fact that he disliked Danny due to his prejudice against soldiers.
Despite the Doctor’s disapproval, Clara and Danny forged ahead with their relationship and for a while, it looked like things would work out for the couple. However, fate had other ideas and just before Clara opened up to Danny about her very (very) complicated life, he died, came back as a Cyberman, and then died again.
Worst - Clara Oswald And The Doctor
When the Doctor and Clara first met, Clara died. Then they met for a second time, and she died again. Thinking to himself ’the third time’s the charm’, the Doctor tracked down the modern day incarnation of Clara and this time he managed to save her. In return, she began traveling with him and exploring the universe.
Their relationship was actually fairly cute but it was marred somewhat by neither of them being able to fully trust the other. The Doctor was trying to figure out exactly who Clara was and how she had already met him, and Clara was smitten with the Doctor but didn’t even know his name (or that River Song was a woman).
Best - River Song And The Doctor
This relationship could have been taken straight out of a Shakespearean tragedy (if the concept of time travel actually existed in that period). The Doctor and River first met in Season 4 and they fought the Vashta Nerada together. However, because they’re both time travelers, the Doctor’s first encounter with River was her last with him.
From that moment on, every time they met, the Doctor would know more about River and she would know less about him. However, this didn’t stop them from being one of the best power couples in the Whoniverse. Hell, if even River killing the Doctor couldn’t get in the way of this couple, then nothing would.
Worst - Martha Jones And The Doctor
Replacing Rose Tyler was never going to be easy. However, Martha grew to become incredibly popular in her own right. She basically saved the world singlehandedly in the Season 3 finale, after all. However, one of the main themes that defined Martha’s character throughout Season 3 was her unrequited love for the Doctor.
Firstly, Martha is so much more than just an unreciprocated crush and the writers should have spent less time concentrating on that arc. Secondly, it made the Doctor look like an uncaring idiot at times and that’s not what you really want from your time-traveling hero. It did give Martha a badass scene at the end of the season though.
Best - Amy Pond And Rory Williams
These two were basically made for each other. They grew up as childhood friends, alongside their daughter Mels who constantly encouraged the two of them to get together. It’s Doctor Who, it’s complicated. After a very hesitant start, in which Amy accidentally thought that Rory was gay, they became an item and eventually got engaged.
However, the Doctor then rocketed back into Amy’s life, throwing a brief wrench into her and Rory’s blossoming relationship. The two men sorted it out though and Rory joined Amy and the Doctor onboard the TARDIS. Their relationship kept on evolving, culminating in Amy choosing to stay with Rory indefinitely when he got sent back in time by a Weeping Angel.
Worst - Rose Tyler And Mickey Smith
Honestly, you’ve got to feel sorry for Mickey. Out of all the characters on Doctor Who, he’s probably had it the worst. He honestly loves his girlfriend to pieces and would do anything for her, but ends up being eaten by a plastic bin. As if that wasn’t bad enough, his girlfriend barely grieves for him and instead joins another man who has an infinitely cooler motor.
Of course, Rose did care strongly for Mickey, but she was bored with her life and that included Mickey to an extent. It didn’t help matters that the Doctor was a complete jerk towards Mickey for the whole of Season 1. Rose and Mickey eventually reached an understanding and he moved on, settling down with Martha.
Best - Astrid Peth And The Doctor
Astrid and the Doctor were one of the cutest couples ever seen on television, and the way this couple ended was so unbelievably tragic. Astrid was an intergalactic waitress from the planet Sto, serving drinks on the Starship Titanic. Similar to Rose, she was bored with her life and longed to see the stars. How on earth could the Doctor resist?
They formed an instant connection with each other and they were simply adorable to watch together. However, they were both stuck on a damaged spaceship which was slowly crashing to Earth so it was fairly obvious that their budding romance would not end well. Astrid’s heroic death brought tears to even the most stoic of viewers.
Worst - Amy Pond And The Doctor
First of all, we loved Amy as a companion and she brought a fresh and dynamic take to the role. However, we stan her relationship with Rory and the way she treated him in Season 5 was totally unfair. Even before she ran away with the Doctor on the eve of her wedding, she acted embarrassed by her relationship with Rory when the Doctor returned to their lives.
Amy then committed the ultimate sin by kissing the Doctor and proposing a certain sexual activity after a terrifying encounter with the Weeping Angels. The Doctor realized this had gone too far and so recruited Rory to come aboard the TARDIS to mend his and Amy’s relationship.
Best - Rose Tyler And The Doctor
When the Doctor first met Rose, he was hardened and made bitter by the Time War, and the atrocious act he had committed to end that same War. When Rose first met the Doctor, she was working in a shop, living with her mum and hopelessly wishing that there was more to her life than chips. It was a match made in heaven.
The Doctor and Rose began traveling together and with every adventure, the two grew closer. Their relationship hit a bump when the Doctor regenerated but Rose managed to overcome this obstacle. They never managed to end up together properly, which makes their love story one of the most tragic.
Worst - Donna Noble And Lance Bennett
Ugh. Donna deserved SO much better! The Doctor first met Donna when she was transported on board the TARDIS thanks to her being dosed with Huon particles, which were attracted to the same particles that existed in the TARDIS. However, that exposure to the Huon particles was slowly killing Donna.
Who spiked Donna, you ask? That would be her absolutely charming fiancee, Lance, who was secretly in cahoots with the Empress of the Racnoss. The Empress needed Huon particles to release her children from the center of the Earth and Lance was only too willing to offer up his beloved in exchange for seeing the universe. He will not be sorely missed.
